Columnist Ralph Siraco: Radical sheikh’s bold move pays off in Dubai

Ralph Siraco

Monday, March 27, 2000 | 9:48 a.m.

Ralph Siraco's horse racing column appears Monday and his Southern California selections run Tuesday through Friday on the scoreboard page. Reach him c/o Las Vegas Sun, 800 S. Valley View Blvd., Las Vegas, NV 89107.

If you think that building a multimillion-dollar state-of-the-art racing facility, staging an $11.5 million night of racing at that Taj Mahal and inviting the best horses, jockeys and owners from around the world to your little oasis in the sand -- just for the sport of it -- is a little arrogant, then watching the Dubai World Cup racing program Saturday, beamed halfway around the world to local race books, must have driven you crazy.

Especially if you did the driving -- while paying $2 a gallon -- to watch the royal show from the little oil-rich country of United Arab Emirates in the Middle East.

But if that wasn't enough, how about the fact the owner renamed his horse to fit the occasion two years prior to the event, and even before the horse ran in a race.

To boot, that same horse not only wins the richest race in the world at his owner's track, but in the process beats the best thoroughbreds that the world could round up for the occasion -- and does it in record time in a desert runaway!

Dubai Millennium, a 4-year-old son of Seeking the Gold, lived up to the expectations of his royal owner -- Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum -- and confirmed the crown prince of Dubai's belief in changing the name of Yaazer (the horse's original name) for the occasion.

The fifth edition of the Dubai World Cup may have been the most breathtaking performance in a Grade I race since Secretariat drubbed his rivals in the 1973 Belmont Stakes.

Make no mistake about it, there is no comparison between Dubai Millennium and Big Red just yet, but the astonishing rout that he dealt to a full field of Grade I horses in the desert Saturday did remind onlookers of that Belmont runaway some 27 years ago.

The $6 million centerpiece of the five-race series, run on a warm Saturday evening at Nad al-Sheba Racecourse, showcased the best horses in training on the planet today. Among the challengers were five America-based runners, a world traveler, another from the homeland and one each from France, Great Britain, Japan, Hong Kong and Argentina. Malek, the 1998 Santa Anita Handicap winner, would have made it six from the States, but he was injured just days before the race while training and was promptly retired.

Nevertheless, the Dubai World Cup field had cumulatively amassed 84 victories and more than $14.5 million in earnings -- and had also attracted the best riders in the world. The American contingent included Chris McCarron, Corey Nakatani, Shane Sellers, Kent Desormeaux, J.R. Velasquez, Jerry Bailey and the world's winningest jockey, Laffit Pincay Jr. But it would be Lanfranco Dettori who got the call to chauffeur the equine Rolls Royce -- and all he had to do was hang on.

Dubai Millennium broke from the gate sharply and "Frankie" let him settle on the lead as they paced the field up the first of three long straights that comprise the unusual configuration of the Nad al-Sheba layout. After negotiating one of two sweeping turns that cover the 1 1/4 miles of the Cup, Dubai Millennium was closely pursued by Americans Ecton Park and Behrens with a host of others clustered just behind in stalking positions.

As the field rounded the final turn into the three-furlong homestretch, Jorge Chavez sent Behrens to make his move. But Dettori set down his partner to dispose of any threat with a quick turn of foot that extended the lead so suddenly that it looked as though the others had turned to stone.

With Behrens left in his wake, Dubai Millennium's only challenger was the clock. As he rolled through the stretch with some 30,000 fans clapping in rhythmic applause, Dubai Millennium stopped the timer in 1:59:50, a time that broke his own track record -- established just three weeks before -- by one-tenth of a second.

Dubai Millennium's six-length margin of victory was deceptively small, as Behrens ran the race of his life and easily secured the runner-up spot some 5 1/2 lengths ahead of third-place Public Purse, who bested fast-closing Puerto Madero by a head.

Ecton Park completed a sweep of second-through-fifth place finishes for the America-based runners.

Although wagering is not permitted in Dubai because of the region's religious beliefs, the American and European pools had the home-court monster as the betting favorite. Dubai Millennium returned $4.40 to win in the U.S.

Winning rider Frankie Dettori said, "Words cannot do justice to what Dubai Millennium did tonight."

Dettori, who rode Daylami to a Breeders' Cup Turf victory for the same connections last year, sidestepped comparisons to the turf star, but certainly entertains a chance at redemption with Dubai Millennium in this year's Breeders' Cup Classic. The Breeders' Cup will be held at Churchill Downs this year, and it was at the famed home of the Kentucky Derby that Dettori was criticized for his ride on third-place Swain in the 1998 Breeders' Cup Classic.

Simon Crisford, the racing manager for Sheikh Mohammed's worldwide Godolphin stable, noted that Dubai Millennium is extremely versatile.

"He is equally good on turf or dirt," Crisford said.

Dubai Millennium's record of six victories in seven lifetime turf starts speaks for itself, and his 2-for-2 record on dirt at this distance on the Nad al-Sheba track bodes well for the Breeders' Cup Classic at the same distance in Kentucky.

"The Breeders' Cup Classic is definitely the ultimate goal," said Crisford, who indicated that the World Cup winner may run next at Royal Ascot in the Prince of Wales Stakes.

Sheikh Mohammed thinks Dubai Millennium is the best horse he has ever owned -- a strong statement considering Godolphin's impressive holdings around the world.

"(Dubai Millennium) will go for all of the best races in Europe and North America in the Emirates World Series," the sheikh said.

If that's true, then stateside racing fans will have a chance to see the super horse in Chicago at Arlington International Racecourse in the August 17 Arlington Million.